Ezekiel 44, The Perfect Temple (Part Five)

The administration of the millennial kingdom worship will be the prince and the priests of Zadok. Who is the prince?

1 The man then brought me back toward the sanctuary’s outer gate that faced east, and it was closed. 2 Yahweh said to me, “This gate will remain closed. It will not be opened, and no one will enter through it, because Yahweh, the God of Israel, has entered through it. Therefore it will remain closed. 3 The prince himself will sit in the gate to eat a meal before Yahweh. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gate and go out the same way.”

“The identity of this “prince” has been a puzzle. The English word “prince” connotes royalty. However, the Hebrew word is best translated “leader.” This leader is not the Messiah, because he would make a sin offering for himself (cf. 45:22); such is not possible for the Lord Jesus (cf. Heb 4:15). In addition, this leader would have natural children (46:16), another impossibility for the Messiah. The leader was a man, but his identity remains unknown. He functions as the people’s leader in their millennial worship, almost like a high priest, but not having the same role and function.” (Expositor’s Bible Commentary)

4 Then the man brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple. I looked, and the glory of Yahweh filled his temple. And I fell facedown. 5 Yahweh said to me, “Son of man, pay attention; look with your eyes and listen with your ears to everything I tell you about all the statutes and laws of Yahweh’s temple. Take careful note of the entrance of the temple along with all the exits of the sanctuary.

“The priests would instruct the rest of the people in holiness, teaching holiness by their lives, their priestly function, and their word. For this reason Ezekiel was exhorted to watch and listen carefully to all the temple regulations, especially those concerning the entrances and exits. There the priests would contact both the common life in the people and the holiness of the temple’s inner court and sanctuary. There they would meet and serve the people.” (Expositor’s)

The Levites’ Duties and Privileges
6 “Say to the rebellious people, the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord Yahweh says: I have had enough of all your detestable practices, house of Israel. 7 When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in both heart and flesh, to occupy my sanctuary, you defiled my temple while you offered my food—the fat and the blood. You broke my covenant by all your detestable practices. 8 You have not kept charge of my holy things but have appointed others to keep charge of my sanctuary for you.’

9 “This is what the Lord Yahweh says: No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart and flesh, may enter my sanctuary, not even a foreigner who is among the Israelites. 10 Surely the Levites who wandered away from me when Israel went astray, and who strayed from me after their idols, will bear the consequences of their iniquity. 11 Yet they will occupy my sanctuary, serving as guards at the temple gates and ministering at the temple. They will slaughter the burnt offerings and other sacrifices for the people and will stand before them to serve them. 12 Because they ministered to the house of Israel before their idols and became a sinful stumbling block to them, therefore I swore an oath against them”—this is the declaration of the Lord Yahweh—“that they would bear the consequences of their iniquity. 13 They must not approach me to serve me as priests or come near any of my holy things or the most holy things. They will bear their disgrace and the consequences of the detestable acts they committed. 14 Yet I will make them responsible for the duties of the temple—for all its work and everything done in it.

“The religions of the ancient Near East frequently used foreign captives as temple servants to aid the priests. The Lord’s rebuke of Israel in these verses reflected ancient Israel’s adoption of this practice. This custom was first observed in Israel when Joshua made the Gibeonites temple servants (Jos 9:23, 27). Israel seems to have continued this practice through the time of Ezra (Ezr 8:20). However, the Mosaic covenant stated that foreigners who were uncircumcised in flesh and heart were not to minister in the temple as priests, along with all other Israelites not of the Aaronic line (cf. Nu 3:10).” (Expositor’s) It is not enough to be physically circumcised; there must be a circumcision of the heart. The hardness of the heart must be cut away.

The Priests’ Duties and Privileges
15 “But the Levitical priests descended from Zadok, who kept charge of my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, will approach me to serve me. They will stand before me to offer me fat and blood.” This is the declaration of the Lord Yahweh. 16 “They are the ones who may enter my sanctuary and approach my table to serve me. They will keep my mandate. 17 When they enter the gates of the inner court they are to wear linen garments; they must not have on them anything made of wool when they minister at the gates of the inner court and within it. 18 They are to wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments around their waists. They are not to put on anything that makes them sweat. 19 Before they go out to the outer court, to the people, they must take off the clothes they have been ministering in, leave them in the holy chambers, and dress in other clothes so that they do not transmit holiness to the people through their clothes.

20 “They may not shave their heads or let their hair grow long, but are to carefully trim their hair. 21 No priest may drink wine before he enters the inner court. 22 He is not to marry a widow or a divorced woman, but may marry only a virgin from the offspring of the house of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest. 23 They are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and explain to them the difference between the clean and the unclean.

24 “In a dispute, they will officiate as judges and decide the case according to my ordinances. They are to observe my laws and statutes regarding all my appointed festivals, and keep my Sabbaths holy. 25 A priest may not come near a dead person so that he becomes defiled. However, he may defile himself for a father, a mother, a son, a daughter, a brother, or an unmarried sister. 26 After he is cleansed, he is to count off seven days for himself. 27 On the day he goes into the sanctuary, into the inner court to minister in the sanctuary, he is to present his sin offering.” This is the declaration of the Lord Yahweh.

28 “This will be their inheritance: I am their inheritance. You are to give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession. 29 They will eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering. Everything in Israel that is permanently dedicated to Yahweh will belong to them. 30 The best of all the firstfruits of every kind and contribution of every kind from all your gifts will belong to the priests. You are to give your first batch of dough to the priest so that a blessing may rest on your homes. 31 The priests may not eat any bird or animal that died naturally or was mauled by wild beasts. (Ezekiel 44)

“The Levites would be in charge of the temple gates, where they would slaughter the burnt offerings and other sacrifices for the people and assist them in their worship. The Levites would also be responsible for all work done in the temple, perhaps those duties previously handled by foreigners. Limitations were placed on Levites’ ministry. They would not be permitted to serve the Lord as priests nor would they be allowed to come near any of the Lord’s holy things, especially his most holy offerings. They would serve neither in the inner court nor in the temple itself. The reason for this restriction was explicit. As a group they had strayed from the Lord in the past and had pursued idolatry.” (Expositor’s)